John Eustace drops worrying Derby County injury update | OneFootball

Carlton Morris has yet to return to training, amidst Derby's struggles at the top end of the pitch

Derby County will still be without Carlton Morris for this Saturday's lunchtime meeting with Birmingham City, with head coach John Eustace revealing that the 30-year-old has yet to return to first-team training.

It's been a difficult opening to the 2026/27 campaign for the Rams, who sit inside the relegation zone with one win in their first six matches.

Injuries have played their part at both ends of the pitch. Influential centre-back Matt Clarke has been absent since the EFL Cup defeat against Lincoln City and will miss the next couple of months, too.

Meanwhile, at the top end of the pitch, Derby are still reeling from the Achilles injury Patrick Agyemang suffered in April, but second-choice frontman, Carlton Morris, has been out for the last four games, too.

Derby County star Carlton Morris still sidelined with a calf problem

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What initially seemed to be just a small muscle injury has yet to subside for Morris, though, as John Eustace revealed ahead of tomorrow's clash with Birmingham.

"Not really. He's done a little tiny bit with physios and what not," the Derby boss said, per Derbyshire Live, when asked if the 30-year-old was back in training.

"I think it's still probably too early for Carlton, as we don't want to risk him."

Derby's attacking numbers in recent weeks have been rather concerning. They've failed to score in three of the four games Morris has been absent for, didn't register a shot on target in 3-0 defeats against Swansea City and West Ham United, and only managed three against a West Brom side who had 10 men for the better part of an hour on Wednesday night.

Eustace is still backing those in reserve, though. He may have deployed attacking midfielder Sammie Szmodics in the line-leading role on Wednesday, but the Rams boss still feels that new arrival Henrik Meister and Lars-Jorgen Salvesen can still do an apt job.

"I think Henrik came on last night and looked sharp. He also did okay at West Ham. We've got Lars, who obviously scored against Portsmouth as well, so we've got some good options up there," Eustace added.

Derby County fans are desperate for Carlton Morris to return

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Morris has been solid for Derby since he arrived from Luton Town last summer. He began last season brilliantly, before a leg injury in November kept him out for nearly three months.

This year, he was involved in goals in both the opening two league games, and Rams fans are missing his presence up front.

"We desperately miss Carlton Morris #dcfc." one Derby fan tweeted during their recent 1-0 loss against West Brom. "Spamming crosses from Joe Ward isn’t going to work if we haven’t got a Carlton Morris or Agyemang in the box to head them in…," another wrote after the game.

"You know it’s bad when you can’t beat West Brom, the one that never fails… Absolutely crying out for Carlton Morris, I don’t think their keeper made a save?🐏 #dcfcfans," was also amongst the comments in response to that defeat against the Baggies.

As was, "Without a fit carlton morris i just don't see where the goals come from to have us competing #dcfc." Evidently, it's all pretty pessimistic amongst Derby fans, currently.

John Eustace needs a good attacking performance from Derby County against Birmingham City

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While John Eustace has a good bit of credit in the bank for his work to keep Derby in the Championship at the tail end of the 2024/25 campaign and then the eighth-placed finish he oversaw in his first full season in charge, you can't help but feel that the start of this season is resulting in some pressure being put on his role.

There have been injuries in key positions, but the performances, regardless, haven't been at the level that many expect from a Eustace side.

Derby simply haven't laid a glove on certain opponents this season, which is massively concerning, and Rams fans are starting to get a bit restless. Not having Morris back will limit their quality going forward, but their head coach needs to find a way to bring about form from his backup options.

The Rams began last season slowly before building towards that play-off push. The same may not be acceptable for the second year in a row.